Internal-combustion engine



March. 9 1926. 1,576,306

E. RQBURTNETT INTERNAL GOMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Oct. 24, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 March 9 1926. l 1,576,306

E. R; BURTNETT INTERNAL `COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed oct. 24 1922 2 sheets-Sheet 2 lill nvnanrr n. nua'rnnrr, or Los ancienne, carin-enivre, 'essienong nv nrc'r n ransnn .assrenirnnra'ro ran .auroiaorrvn venres co., or Los ancianas, cararonirra, e. vonunranv racer.

INTERNL-COMBUSTON ENGllllll'E.

Application filed @ctober 24,1922. Serial No. 596,580.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that l, Evnnnfrr R. BURT- Nn'rr, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, countyot Los Angeles, State otCalionnia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.1

lViy invention relates generally to internal combustion engines and more particularly to an engine that operates on a 'modified two-stroke cycle.

The principal objects of my invention are, to generally improve upon and simn plify the construction and operation of the existing` forms of similar vtypes of engines, and to provide an engine having` a combustion chamber that includes a stratification ignition chamber and which latter receives only, charges of gaseous fuel that are un-V diluted by any inert volume of the air or residual products of combustion that'torm the content of the combustion cylinder and piston displacemennat the time of the induction of the gaseous fuel charge, the ob.- ject being to permit the engine to be operated with extremely high compression of the fuel charges, Without detonation or series combustion of each charge.

Further objects ol my invention are to provide an engine having combnstioncyln inders and pumping; or supercharging cyl inders, each combustion cylinder having a tivo diameter piston structure that is ei- 'ective in producing` the scavenging and air pumping and compressing operations, the piston of one combustion. cylinder, pumping air by its larger diameter slrirt during the tiring charge compression stroke, to the opposite tiring combustion cylinder during the exhaust period; further, to displace the residual products ot combustion in the cylinder at the end ci .the expansion or povver stroke, with cool l'ree air, thereby providing' a. constant cool inert initial v olurne to the combustion cylinder, such action taking place during" the time period betweenthe opening` of the exhaust port ineens and Fill* `the opening ot the gaseous fuel. induction port or valve means, the exhaust port means closin before the opening; of the gaseous fuel inlet port means, said ngaseous fuel induction port means opening a 'ter the scavenging air and emaust port means have an engine of the character described, means whereby the gaseous fuel inductlon is aut-1 tected and controlled by valve means located in the cylinder head, said gaseous fuel .3 being,f precompressed by externally ole-@5 veloped pressure,`of a degree suilicient to1 cause said gaseous fuel to enter the combustill tion chamber 'during the lirst part of the compression stroke orperiod, thereby supercharging the combustion cylinder with a gaseous fuel. volume against the compression.

resulting from the initial cylinder displacement and compression clearance content, comprising the non-scavenged residual products of combustion, and the :tree air scavenging volume that vvas irst admitted.'

Further objects ol' my' invention are, to provide an engine having but one shaft op erating by the two stroke cycle and to actuate the gaseous fuel inlet valves directly from said shaft; to provide anrengine in which a greater volume than the piston svveep content at atmospheric pressure, canl be inducted into the combustion cylinder, thereby providing; a dual volume, via, an in ert volume as an initial content and a su.- percharged ,content of gaseous fuel, thereby producinga greater expansion in power development and torque tenacity;` to provide orthe stratification ot the. inducted gaseous :tuel charge, in an ignition pocket, thereby bringing about instant and complete llame propagation through the pocketed volume ont gaseous fuel, the latter being of unilorin molecular density, thus reducingjtbe distance ol llame travel and eliminating the variation of internal combustion pressure caused by more than one pocket gaseous fuel er# isting in the one compressed charge Where turbulence` was not complete and. the ad itted fuel chargge vvasdiluted by the raamu p1 ession. clearance content of pred.- uets ot combustion; further, to provide an internal combustion engine that ad stable to multi-cylinder arrangement and saving; simple gras mixture inlet manifold structure that Will be effective in reducing condensa.n tion and unequal volume and denn Gil sity distribution to all cylinders where only one carburetor is employed, further, to pro- View my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal Vertical section taken'through the center of an engine of my improved construction.

Fig. 2 is a detail section taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a'horizontal section line 3 3 of Fig. 1. y

Referring by numerals t0 the accompany-l ing drawings which illustrate' a practical embodiment of my invention, 10 designates a cylinder block, in the central portion of which'is formed a pair of gaseous fuel compression chambers 11. In each end portion of the block and parallel `with the chambers 11 is formed a bore or chamber having two different diameters, the upper chamber of smaller diameter constituting a combustion chamber 12 and the lower chamber of larger diameter constituting an air compressing chamber 13.

Depending from the block 10 ,is a crank case 14,' having anti-friction bearings 15 in its ends for a crank shaft 16. This crank shaft is formed with cranks 17 located` directly below the combustion and compressing chambers 12 and 13, and with cranks taken on 18 located below the compression chamlbers 11.

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The bottom of the crank case is closed by a combined oil sump and splash plate 19.

Formed ou the end portions of the crank shaft 16 are cams 20 that are for the purpose of opening the valves that control the admission of gaseous fuel into the ignition chambers and bearing on the peri heries of said cams are the 'lower ends of p'ungers 21 that -are -arrangedI for sliding movement through suitably located bearings 22.

Formed through the wall ofthe block 10 and leading from the lower portion of each combustion chamber 12 are exhaust ports such as 23 and formed through the wall surrounding each combustion chamber 12 and preferably directly opposite to said exhaust ports, are ports 24 that admit the compressed air utilized in scavenging the combustion chambers.

Formed through the wall of the cylinder block directly below theair inlet ports 24 and communicating with the upper .portions .of the air compression chambers, are

ports .25.

' Compressed air ducts 26 are formed in the wall on one side of the cylinder block 10, said ducts crossing each other at an intermediate point and each duct leads from the port 25 of one chamber 13 to th inlet ports 24 of the opposite combustioncl/i/amber 12.

By virtue of this arrangement the .-air compressed in each chamber/ 13 is transferred to the opposite comb y tion chamber for scavenging purposes. A ranged for reciprocatory movement within each chamber 11 is a piston 27 and connecting the Wrist pin thereof with the corresponding 'crank 18 is an'ordinary-connectingl rod 28.-

Arranged for recipro'catory movement within each chamber 12 is a power piston 29, having on its lower end a skirt portion 3() of larger diameter and which latter performs the functions of an air compressing piston within the chamber 13. The wrist pin of each of these combination pistons is con-` nected to the corresponding crank 17 by an ordinary connecting rod 31.

Formed on top ofthe head of each pistou 21 is a 'deflecting rib or flange 32, that is disposed and vformed so as to defiect the compressed air that enters ports 24 upwardly through the combustionchamber 12.

The pistons27, 29 and 30 are provided with suitable packing rings. The upper end of each combustion chamber 12 is substantially semi-spherical or dome-shape and said upper end, so shaped, communicates through an axially arranged opening 33 with the' lower end of a semi-spherical or cu -shaped recess that is formed in the top of t e cylinder block.v

Detachably secured on top of the c linder block 10 and serving as a head or thc various chambers therein, is a block or casting 34 and formed in the under face thereof are substantially semi-spherical recesses that coincide with the respective recesses in the top of block 10 above the combustion chambers therein and form substantially spherical ignition chambers 35.

Formed in head block 34 and establishing communication between the ignition-chambers 35. and the adjacent chambers 11 are substantially inverted U-shaped ducts 36.

Suitable valve seats are formed at thc points where these ducts join the lignition chambers 35 and normally resting on said seats, are gaseous fuel inlet valves 37 that are carried by the lower ends of valve stems 38.

Associated with each valve stem is a compression spring 39 that normally holds the valve upon its seat.

The walls of the blocks 10 and 34 surrounding the combustion chambers 12, ignition chambers 35 and ducts 36 are formed with communicating chambers through mechanically opening said valve.

atraso@ which may be circulated a duid cooling medium, 'such as water. 4

Bearing' on the upper end of each valve stem 38 is one end of a rocker arm 40 that is fulcrumed on a suitable bracket 41.

rlllie outer end of this rocker arm carries an adjustable member-42 that, bears on'the upper end of a push rod 43 and the lower end of the latter bears on the` upper end of the corresponding plunger 21. Seated in the side portions of the head 34 above each powercylinder are spark plugs 44, the inner ends of the electrodes of which, project into the upper portion of the ignition chamber 35.

The members-of each pair of spark plugs are disposed on opposite sides of the adjacent valve37 and by thus providing two plugs for each ignition chamber 35, uniform movement of the flame propagation through the compressed charge of gaseous fuel within said chamber is assured. l

Formed onhead 34, directly above duct 36 is alhousing 45, having a gaseous fuel inlet opening 46 and4 removably seated in each housing is a valve ca e 47 having aninlet port 48 that communicates with the adjacent opening 46 and with the adjacent duct 36. f

Arranged for operation in each cage vis an inlet valve 49 which, as illustrated, may

be adapted to open automatically under the suction' produced by the downward movement of the piston in the adjacent chamber- 11', or suitable means may be provided for Located between 'the housings 45 is tubular (connection '50,' the ends of the branches thereof being directlyfconnected to the openings 46, and the inlet end of this connection is connected to a suitable source of gaseous fuel supply, preferably a carburetor, by a pipe 5la A housing 5,2 is formed around that portion of the connection 50 where the mainV duct branches, thereby providing a chamber 53.

rlhe exhaust products of combustion from the combustion chambers 12, may be caused to pass through this'chamber 53, thereby heating the Y-conneetion to form a so called hot spot and which latter will be effective in heating the gaseous fuel just rior to its entrance into compression cham ers 11.

Air is admitted to the compression chaml bers 13, through inwardly opening check valves 54 that are seated in the wall of the cylinder block at the upper ends of the respective compression c ambers. A The operation of my improved engine is as follows: f

As power piston 29 asses high center, sparks are produced at t e inner ends of the spark plugs/44, thereby igniting at different points, the charge of gaseousifuel that is driving the same downward on its power stroke.

Just prior to the time the piston reaches low center exhaust port 23 is uncovered to materially reduce the 4internal pressure'and aninstant later the compressed air inlet port 24 is uncovered', thereby admitting a charge of air which was compressed in the opposite chamber 13 by the skirt portion 30 of the corresponding piston during its prior upward stroke, andv said compressed air flowing through the corresponding transfer duct 26. l

This blast'of compressed air is deflected through the combustion chamber l2 by ange or ribs 32 on the piston head and, as a result, practically all products of combustion are thus driven from said chamber.

The upper edge of the exhaust port occupies a plane .slightly above the plane occupied by the upper edge of the air inlet port 24, consequently the exhaust ort o ens earlier and closes later than sai air inlet ort. p On the downward stroke of the piston 29 atmospheric air is drawn into chamber 13 through inlet checlr valve 54 .and on the succeeding upward strokeof the piston, this air is compressed in said chamber 13 and passes through the corresponding transfer duct 26 to the opposite combustion chamber, when the piston therein is at its' low center. l

As the gaseous fuel compression piston moves downward,gaseous fuel is drawn into chamber 11 past valve 49 from ll-connection i50, which latter is heated by the exhaust from the engineand on theupstroke of the piston 27, the preheated gaseous fuel is comressed within the upper portion of chamer 11 and within duct 36, and as the power piston 29A in the adjacent chamber 12 moves upwardly therein, corresponding valve 38 will be opened to permit this charge of compressed gaseous fuel yto enter the corresponding ignition chamber 35. As the power piston continuesto move upward, the charge of gaseous lfuel will be compressed within the ignition chamber with a stratum of residual products ofA combustion and air between .the volume of compresse-d gaseous fuel and the top of ythepower piston and at the point of highest compression or immediately thereafter, the compressed charge is ignited as hereinbefore described.

Thus it will be seen that I have produced Obviously the details of construction of` my improved engine may be varied in size, form' and construction without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claim:

I claim as my invention:

The combination in a two stroke cycle internal combustion engine, of four cylinders arranged in a row parallel with the axis of the crank shaft of the engine, the two end cylinders being ot' two diameter structure, the n two center cylinders being of straight diameter structure, means to bypass compressed air from the enlarged piston chamber of each center cylinder to the other power chamber atthe end of the row, valvular means for admitting a charge to the annular space created between the large diameters of the'end cylinders and the pistons therein, valvular means for admittlng a charge to the head clearance space of the two center cylinders, valvular means for the transfer' of a precompressed charge from the Said pump cylinders to the head clearance chamber of the adjacent endcylinders, ports formed in thel wall ofthe lesser diameter of each two diameter end cylinders, a four crank throw crank shaft, a separate connection between each of the four pistons and the crank shaft, each piston being connected to a separate crank throw, the second piston from either end being late in the direction of crank rotation, a suflicient number of degrees relative to the first crank from the same end so as to cause the piston with said second cylinder from the given end, to reach inder closes.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification. EVERETT R. BURTNETT. 

